When Dr. Christopher Jahraus tells his patients they will be well taken care of at Shelby Baptist's Cancer Care Center, he speaks from personal experience. And not just as a physician.

Dr. Jahraus, a radiation oncologist who has been at Shelby Baptist Medical Center since 2009, recently discovered a mass on the outside of his chest wall. So the operating table was turned and the doctor became the patient. He received a scan from Dr. Susan Ferguson and then underwent outpatient surgery performed by Dr. Rex Sherer.

Dr. Jahraus says the experience enhanced his appreciation of the quality of care offered at Shelby, with an emphasis on "care."

"I was so impressed by the whole system," Dr. Jahraus says. "Shelby has this wonderful ability to be a high-tech medical center, and yet we have the small-town attitude in terms of treating you like a real person. That's what I love about it."

Like most patients facing a surgical procedure, Dr. Jahraus says he was "a nervous wreck" as he was being prepared for the operating room. His nerves calmed, however, once his pre-op nurse arrived and began to help him relax.

"Oh my gosh, she was so wonderful," Dr. Jahraus says. "She had this motherly nature about her that just calmed me down. You don't always get that at hospitals. That's what I mean when I say the people at Shelby work in a "big-time" hospital, but they have a sense of community and personal care usually only found in small towns."

Dr. Jahraus says he was placed further at ease by Dr. Sherer in the moments before his surgery began.

"He came in and said, 'You're going to be in my hands, and we're both going to be in God's hands,'" Dr. Jahraus says. "That reinforced to me that there is something different about this place. Something that drives the spirit here and sets the tone.

"From the nurses who took care of me to my doctors and colleagues at Shelby Baptist, I can't fully express the magnitude of my confidence in this place and expertise and compassion of the people who work here. Going through what I did made me value this hospital all the more."

It is a confidence that Dr. Jahraus now passes along to his patients. He wants them to fully understand they are in good hands at Shelby Baptist. Hands that will comfort you, guide you and get you back on the road to recovery.

And Dr. Jahraus makes sure his patients know this isn't just talk. He is speaking from experience. He is speaking from the heart.

"Having gone through this experience gives me the confidence of knowing that patients are not only taken care of here, they're cared about," Dr. Jahraus says. "I tell my patients to have great confidence in these people. I've put myself in their hands and I know I can trust them. If I can trust them and know firsthand the quality of their work, then you can be all the more confident in them."

"Not only do I value the partnership of my colleagues at Shelby, but I trust them so much that there is no way that I would go anywhere else for health care. Period. I know without a shadow of a doubt that I can get the best care right here at Shelby Baptist."

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About Shelby Baptist Medical Center - Shelby Baptist Medical Center is a 192-bed acute care facility in Alabaster with more than 1,000 employees. The hospital offers a comprehensive range of clinical services including cardiology, obstetrics/gynecology, emergency services, orthopedics, neurology, urology and gastroenterology, along with specialized medical and surgical care. A five-story South Bed Tower opened in December 2009 and offers 167,712 new square feet featuring private rooms, clinical laboratory, central sterile supply, admitting, registration area, chapel, public space and mechanical space. Other technological advances at the facility include a 3 Tesla MRI, a robotic surgery program and a state-of-the-art invasive cardiology suite.

About Baptist Health System - Baptist Health System, Inc. is one of the largest health care systems in Alabama and one of the state's largest employers. The System is a not-for-profit, 501(c) corporation that owns and manages four hospitals in the state of Alabama. Baptist Health System is a ministry of the churches of the Birmingham Baptist Association, whose representatives elect the Board of Trustees. It was founded in 1922 by a group of local Baptist congregations.

When Dr. Christopher Jahraus tells his patients they will be well taken care of at Shelby Baptist's Cancer Care Center, he speaks from personal experience. And not just as a physician.

Dr. Jahraus, a radiation oncologist who has been at Shelby Baptist Medical Center since 2009, recently discovered a mass on the outside of his chest wall. So the operating table was turned and the doctor became the patient. He received a scan from Dr. Susan Ferguson and then underwent outpatient surgery performed by Dr. Rex Sherer.

Dr. Jahraus says the experience enhanced his appreciation of the quality of care offered at Shelby, with an emphasis on "care."

"I was so impressed by the whole system," Dr. Jahraus says. "Shelby has this wonderful ability to be a high-tech medical center, and yet we have the small-town attitude in terms of treating you like a real person. That's what I love about it."

Like most patients facing a surgical procedure, Dr. Jahraus says he was "a nervous wreck" as he was being prepared for the operating room. His nerves calmed, however, once his pre-op nurse arrived and began to help him relax.

"Oh my gosh, she was so wonderful," Dr. Jahraus says. "She had this motherly nature about her that just calmed me down. You don't always get that at hospitals. That's what I mean when I say the people at Shelby work in a "big-time" hospital, but they have a sense of community and personal care usually only found in small towns."

Dr. Jahraus says he was placed further at ease by Dr. Sherer in the moments before his surgery began.

"He came in and said, 'You're going to be in my hands, and we're both going to be in God's hands,'" Dr. Jahraus says. "That reinforced to me that there is something different about this place. Something that drives the spirit here and sets the tone.

"From the nurses who took care of me to my doctors and colleagues at Shelby Baptist, I can't fully express the magnitude of my confidence in this place and expertise and compassion of the people who work here. Going through what I did made me value this hospital all the more."

It is a confidence that Dr. Jahraus now passes along to his patients. He wants them to fully understand they are in good hands at Shelby Baptist. Hands that will comfort you, guide you and get you back on the road to recovery.

And Dr. Jahraus makes sure his patients know this isn't just talk. He is speaking from experience. He is speaking from the heart.

"Having gone through this experience gives me the confidence of knowing that patients are not only taken care of here, they're cared about," Dr. Jahraus says. "I tell my patients to have great confidence in these people. I've put myself in their hands and I know I can trust them. If I can trust them and know firsthand the quality of their work, then you can be all the more confident in them."

"Not only do I value the partnership of my colleagues at Shelby, but I trust them so much that there is no way that I would go anywhere else for health care. Period. I know without a shadow of a doubt that I can get the best care right here at Shelby Baptist."

###

About Shelby Baptist Medical Center - Shelby Baptist Medical Center is a 192-bed acute care facility in Alabaster with more than 1,000 employees. The hospital offers a comprehensive range of clinical services including cardiology, obstetrics/gynecology, emergency services, orthopedics, neurology, urology and gastroenterology, along with specialized medical and surgical care. A five-story South Bed Tower opened in December 2009 and offers 167,712 new square feet featuring private rooms, clinical laboratory, central sterile supply, admitting, registration area, chapel, public space and mechanical space. Other technological advances at the facility include a 3 Tesla MRI, a robotic surgery program and a state-of-the-art invasive cardiology suite.

About Baptist Health System - Baptist Health System, Inc. is one of the largest health care systems in Alabama and one of the state's largest employers. The System is a not-for-profit, 501(c) corporation that owns and manages four hospitals in the state of Alabama. Baptist Health System is a ministry of the churches of the Birmingham Baptist Association, whose representatives elect the Board of Trustees. It was founded in 1922 by a group of local Baptist congregations.